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New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick hasn’t made a career of helping the Los Angeles Rams. His teams have won two Super Bowls against the Rams with one of those wins being somewhat controversial. With that said, Belichick made a roster move this week that could help the Rams on Monday Night Football against the Cincinnati Bengals.
On Thursday, the Patriots signed quarterback Will Grier off of the Bengals practice squad. This leaves the Bengals with a hurt Joe Burrow and Jake Browning as the only legitimate quarterback options now on the roster. If the Bengals enter an emergency quarterback situation, that player would currently be running back Joe Mixon. Mixon has taken snaps with the quarterbacks over the past few weeks according to WLWT’s Olivia Ray.
With Will Grier onto New England, the #Bengals quarterback room is down to:
— Olivia Ray (@OliviaRayTV) September 22, 2023
1. Joe Burrow
2. Jake Browning
3. emergency QB Joe Mixon???
Here's Mixon working with the QBs in practice the last couple of weeks ⬇️+ he did have that TD pass in the Super Bowl vs Rams. | @WLWT pic.twitter.com/1coytVA5nH
Belichick signing Grier off of the Bengals practice squad puts the Bengals in a serious bind, especially if Burrow is unable to play in Monday’s game. Cincinnati did sign Reid Sinnett in response to the Grier signing. Sinnett spent some of training camp with the Bengals. However, the Patriots coach certainly put a fellow AFC competitor in a difficult situation.
For now, adding the 3rd QB comes down to one thing: If the #Bengals are on MNF and Joe Burrow is inactive and Jake Browning were to get hurt, who could walk in the huddle, know the plays and maybe make a throw or two.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) September 22, 2023
Sinnett spent camp learning the offense. Hence, he's back.
Also, if the #Bengals actually end up in this worst-case scenario, some combination of Tyler Boyd, Joe Mixon and anybody else willing is throwing a pass at some point.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) September 22, 2023
This is the darkest timeline. pic.twitter.com/ulgudYFoZo
Whether or not this was a gamesmanship move by the Patriots and Belichick is uncertain. The Patriots coach said on Friday about Grier, “We want to work with him. We need depth at that position.” Again, whether or not that’s true is up for debate or if Belichick saw an opportunity to make a team dealing a quarterback injury a lot more thin at the position. At the end of the season, the Patriots could be competing the Bengals for a wild card spot.
Either way, this is a move that could end up benefitting the Rams, especially if Burrow is unable to play Monday Night, leaving the Bengals with Browning as their only viable quarterback option.
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